Saturday, February 25, 2017

Fear on the Streets of San Francisco: Trump Deportation Policy

Snippets from some random conversations I have had over the last couple of days in San Francisco:

A Mexican-American man, who tells me his family tree in California traces back to when California was part of Mexico, says that he now always makes sure he leaves the house with ID, even if it is just to walk his dog.

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A Mexican-American lady tells me that friends of hers that are undocumented are preparing power of attorney papers for control of their bank accounts and other assets and handing them over to lawyers, just in case they get deported.

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An orchard owner tells me that most orchard work is done by the undocumented and that if Trump is successful in deporting them, orchard grown food prices will soar.

As a former Californian, the last thing I worried about was Mexican illegals. Who the hell else was willing to do yard work? My ex-wife, a tiny thing, would drive down to the lumber yard on Saturday mornings, pick up two or three Mexican STRANGERS (her Spanish is excellent), and drive them back to the house to help with landscaping and gardening. Never a thought of her safety being in jeopardy.They worked damn hard and really appreciated the opportunity to work.Try getting a young American dude (white, black or whatever) to do this.

This sounds like the situation when Joe Arpaio was at his height of his anti-immigration campaigns. People generally moved away though I knew one that moved back due to the east coast not being in particularly good economic shape.

I'd be scared too if I was in a country without legal authorization. Hell, when my UK visa expired, they sent a councilman to my door to serve me with the UKBA notice to vacate the country. I complied, because I'm a person who generally follows laws. Those who do not have every reason and every right to be scared.

It's astonishing just how many nasty people came out of the woodwork to showcase their prejudices only because Trump said something stupid about immigrants. It's as if they were only waiting for the sound of the trumpet rallying the troops, and then they ride in the same fashion as one of those promotional posters for a famous D.W. Griffith movie...